Assignment 1

RECF-1046 TR Leisure Concepts

Productivity and Leisure Time

Discussion Questions
Part I – Phone use (10 marks)
1. Provide a brief description and evaluation of the app or method used to track the time spent on
your electronic device. (i.e. How is it supposed work? How well did it work?) (2 marks)

Student response:
Application Name: Digital Wellbeing
It is an in-built application, which works in the background of my phone and tracks my screen
time along with number of notifications received and phone unlocked.

2. Provide a summary of your statistics that include total phone usage and/or total time spent on
various social media/internet applications (students are only to disclose information they are
comfortable disclosing. The information provided will remain confidential between student and
instructor). (2 marks)

Student response:
Dates Oct. 5 Oct. 6 Oct. 7 Oct. 8 Oct. 9 Oct. 10 Oct. 11
Total Phone Usage(in
hrs. & mins.) 7.39 7.6 6.6 6.33 4.46 3.22 5.20

3. Reflect upon your usage:

a) Are you surprised by the amount of time spent on your device over a three to five day
period? (1 mark)

Student Response:
No, I’m not at all surprised by the data revealed because I’m not a tech person and try
to engage myself much into physical activities.

b) How would you categorize the time on your phone or device in terms Jay Nash’s active
participation pyramid? (1 mark) Discuss whether or not you believe you have sacrificed
other important leisure activities for time on your electronic device. (2 marks)

Student Response:
 Creative participation – Learnt cooking, attended classes, clicked and edited
pictures.
 Active Participation – Playing subway surfers.
 Emotional Participation – Using it to recite my prayers and listening to hymns.
No, I don’t think I’ve sacrificed other important leisure activities for the time on I’ve spent on my
phone or laptop.
4. Will you try to change your phone usage habits after this exercise? If so, how? If not, why?
(2 marks)

Student Response:
I think I’ll continue with my current phone usage habits or may reduce a little bit as Bell invented
the device to bring closer by increasing communication, not to develop distance between
people sitting on the same couch deeply engaged in their own devices.

Part II – “How to Gain Control of Your Free Time” – Ted Talk Video (11 marks)
5. Explain in one sentence what Vanderkam means by “time is highly elastic”. (1 mark)
 By saying “time is highly elastic”, Vanderkam meant that hours are fixed but it is up to
an individual how he/she utilizes it by prioritizing their tasks.

6. What is the significance of the broken water heater in Vanderkam’s talk? (1 mark)
 In Vanderkam’s talk the broken water heater signifies that regardless of daily hectic
schedules, one can always arrange time to complete the task he/she considers as a
priority.

7. Analyze and discuss the significance of ‘choice’ in Vanderkam’s talk and apply it to your life. That
is; do you find yourself in control of your choices? Do you feel you might need to be more
assertive with yourself or others on how you choose to spend your time? (2 marks)
Student Response:
Significance of choice:
 Alteration in priorities as per situation
 Managing the time as per the prioritized tasks
I do have situational control over my choices, but I still feel I need to be more assertive
with myself on prioritizing my tasks and manage time and not driven by emotions or
circumstances.

8. After watching Vanderkam’s TED Talk, identify at least one leisure activity that you have made a
priority.

a) What is your strategy to maintain this habit? (1 mark)

Student Response:
Meditation to keep myself calm, focused and healthy.

b) What might be the opportunity cost (the tradeoff) of ensuring that you make time for this
leisure activity (i.e. what are you having to sacrifice to receive the benefit of the leisure
experience?) (1 mark)

Student Response:
Sitting alone and feeling homesick all time.

9. Assume you took Vanderkam’s suggestion and wrote a ‘future family holiday letter’. What three
leisure activities (new and/or familiar) would you put in the letter? For each one, what are the
 current constraints that have limited or prevented your participation in these activities? Identify
them as internal or external constraints. (3 marks)

Activity #1: Meditation

 Constraint(s) – Staying Alone
 Internal ☐ OR External ☒
i. Activity #2: Sticking to the deadlines/ due dates/ exact time of completing a task
 Constraint(s) – Willingness
 Internal ☒ OR External ☐
Activity #3: Reducing sleep time and doing exercise for being active
 Constraint(s) – Medication
 Internal ☐ OR External ☒

10. Reflect on Vanderkam’s beliefs about structuring our time for “the good stuff”. Would her
strategies fit into your life? Explain. Will a reduction in screen time usage play a role in gaining
control of your free time? (2 marks)

Student Response:
Structuring the time for “good stuff”:
 Listing and prioritizing tasks(i.e. setting goals)
 Optimized utilization of time for leisure activities by doing multitasking(like reading book
while travelling)
Vanderkam’s strategies will definitely fit well into my life by
I. enhancing my focus on the course I’ve taken, and
II. improving my health from getting distracted.

Part III – The Death of Leisure (9 marks)

11. During Mustafa’s interview with Anne Helen Petersen (culture writer for Buzzfeed News) at 9:21
in the podcast, Peterson talks about the hardships millennials face in terms of finding time for
leisure. Do you feel that this hardship is exclusive to millennials? Explain, giving consideration to
generations of older adults. (2 marks).

Student Response:
There are hardships in everyone’s lives irrespective of age. As today’s millennials are deeply
engaged in work all time in order to succeed in their professions and the feeling busier, than
they actually are and thinking that they don’t have time for leisure, is the real problem. As
mentioned by Anne Helen Peterson in the podcast, there might be several other hardships that
are often faced by this age group:
 Graduating in recession;
 Struggling for jobs;
 Tensed about their careers and future;
 Their relationship with digital technology, etc.
I do feel all these are exclusive to the millennials.
Whereas in older adults, after passing their millennial age they’ve learned to manage time and
the importance of self-isolation or time for leisure in order to maintaining the productivity in
their lives. Therefore, I feel they’re less stressed even when they’re facing difficulties like loosing
their cognition, lowering physical capabilities, etc.
12. Naheed Mustafa interviews Brigid Schulte (at 20:20 in the podcast), a journalist and researcher
on the topic of leisure.

a) According to their discussion, what is the challenge with the definition of leisure? (1 mark)

Student Response:
Every individual holds different feelings, opinions while defining leisure. For some it is non-
paid work that has some social benefit, others it might be sitting back and relaxing.
According to the discussion on the definition of leisure, Brigid’s response is justified that the
challenge with the definition of leisure is recognizing a person’s interests, needs and
managing time accordingly. For instance, one who hates gardening, it is just a household
chore that needs to be done, whereas for another who loves to do gardening might consider
it as leisure time for himself.

b) Do you agree with Schulte’s feelings on the definition of leisure? Why or why not? (1 mark)

Student Response:
Yes, I totally agree with Schulte’s feeling on the definition of leisure by researcher Ben
Hunnicutt of Iowa that “leisure is that place where we can become most fully human”. It is
important to be free from being time bounded and under the pressure of being productive
every time. Joy can be found in bits and pieces of time and it is important to avail the
benefits of leisure.

13. Mustafa also speaks with Alex Strick van Linschoten, a writer based in Afghanistan (at 28:25 in
the podcast).

a) How did the onset of a chronic condition change his perspective on the value of productivity
vs. leisure? (1 mark)

Student Response:
In the words of Alex “beats in between the notes of the music are just as important as the
notes themselves”. The chronic condition made him rethink on his definition for leisure like
the small breaks between the work or self-care, which he considered as a weakness and
non-productive.

b) How do you believe his experience might compare to the experience of older adult
populations in terms of having productive value and self-esteem? (2 marks)

Student Response:
On comparing Alex’s situation in the hospital with the older adults in a PCH environment,
who have to live under surveillance all time requiring assistance for performing their
activities of daily living (ADLs) effectively and as productive as they did earlier lowers their
self-esteem leaving them with a thought of being burden on others or not being productive
or capable of doing much by themselves.

c) Identify two ways that therapeutic recreation professionals help boost the self-esteem of
older adults living in residential care. (2 marks)
 Student Response:
Therapeutic recreation professionals help boosting the self-esteem of older adults living in
residential care in several ways:
 By organizing group activities as per their capabilities to help them familiarizing with
peers and adapt to the new environment.
 By providing professional care, having heart to heart conversations with them and
make them feel worthier and valued.

/30 = /25%

Suggestions to Track Phone/Internet/Social Media Usage

Students are responsible for doing their own research on the app. that they download onto
their phone for this assignment. Alternative tracking applications are welcome. RRC is not
responsible for terms of agreement between students and the developers of the applications.

Mute
justmuteit.com
The newest app in this genre, Mute tracks screen-time and pickups, and logs your “detox
streaks” with an emphasis on celebrating the latter.

Moment 
inthemoment.io
Moment sets daily limits on your usage, and will even try to force you off the device with a
barrage of notifications if you choose that option

Space 
space-app.com
Space starts with a quiz to assign you a phone-user “type” (from Rabbit Hole Wanderer to
Sticky Social Mitt) and then helps you set goals to change your habits.

Hold 
holdstudent.com
Aimed at students, Hold tracks how much time they spend not using their phone, and converts
that into points to be redeemed for real-world rewards.

Forest 
forestapp.cc
Forest takes a different approach: starting the app plants a virtual tree, which grows for as long
as you don’t quit the app (and thus use other ones), but dies if you exit.